MP

Bob Kucera has been the sitting MP for the abolished seat of Yokine since 2001. He was squeezed out of Labor pre-selection and resigned to sit as an Independent in May 2008. After threatening to contest the election, he announced at the start of the campaign that he has decided to retire.

Profile

The electorate of Mount Lawley covers a strip of inner northern Perth suburbs lying east of Wanneroo Road and Walcott Street, south of Morley Drive. It includes the suburbs of Yokine, Coolbinia, Menora, Mt Lawley, and parts of Dianella, Inglewood, Maylands and East Perth.

Redistribution

The electorate of Mt Lawley is based on the abolished seat of Yokine, losing everything north of Morley Drive to the new seats of Nollamara and Morley, while gaining Mt Lawley and Menora from Perth, and parts of Maylands and Inglewood from Maylands. Overall this produces a Labor seat with a notional majority of 5.9% compared to 8.2% for the old seat of Yokine.

History/Trivia

Mt Lawley has been re-created by the redistribution, having previously existed as an electorate between 1950 and 1989. In that period the seat was always won by the Liberal Party, among its members being Ray O'Connor from 1962 to 1984. O'Connor served as Premier 1982-83, succeeding his former World War 2 commanding officer Charles Court as Premier, and leading the Liberal Party to defeat at the hands of Brian Burke in 1983. O'Connor was to join Burke as a victim of the WA Inc Royal Commission, O'Connor convicted of having pocketed a cheque from Bond Corporation intended as a bribe to local councillors.

2-Party Booth Result

A mixed electorate with Labor recording majorities in 11 of the 15 booths, ranging from 47.9% at Sutherland Primary in Dianella to 66.7% at St Paul's Primary in Mount Lawley.

Main Candidates

The new Labor candidate is political lobbyist and former journalist Karen Brown, one of Alan Carpenter's chosen candidates. The Liberal candidate is solicitor and Perth Deputy Mayor Michael Sutherland.

Assessment

The danger to Labor from Bob Kucera has now passed, but Mount Lawley is still a marginal seat, though at the upper range of swing for the Liberal Party.